How to Opt Out of Ad Tracking on Android « Android :: Gadget Hacks

Most of the free apps you’ll find on the Play Store have ads. These ads are personalized — in various other words, they’re for products along with services Google believes you might be interested in. The way Google knows about your interests will be by collecting data via your smartphone, including your location along with app usage. While personalized ads have their advantages, the collection of data will be unsettling.

Google will be able to collect This kind of data using what will be known as an advertising ID. This kind of will be a unique identifier attached to a packet of data which contains bits of your browsing habits along with history, though the idea will be anonymous in theory.

Google then sells ad space to companies by promising they’ll match the ads users see with their personal interests using the information contained in their advertising IDs. For privacy-conscious users, Google has provided a way to stop This kind of form of tracking that has a pair of settings built into Android.

at This kind of point, your advertising ID won’t be used by apps on your phone to build advertising profiles based on your usage. Enabling This kind of setting will also prevent apps via displaying targeted ads. You are still tracked by Google, although random ads are shown instead.

Step 2: Reset Your Advertising ID (Optional)

For additional protection, you can reset your advertising ID. By resetting your ID, you will remove the data which was already collected via your app along with internet usage, although This kind of isn’t a permanent solution. The database of tracked information will simply return to zero, then brand new data will be collected using a brand new advertising ID.

Above the “Opt out of Ads Personalization” setting inside the same Google menu depicted in Step 1, you’ll find an option labeled “Reset advertising ID.” When you tap This kind of, your advertising ID (which will be shown below the list of options) will change to a brand new ID.

Depending on the frequency in which you reset your ID, you can minimize the amount of data collected about you. For example, if you reset your advertising ID daily, collected information will be limited to 24 hours. Since Google will still track your ID even if you opt out of personalized ads, we strongly recommend resetting your ID on a weekly basis at a minimum.

Google has taken into account those of us who wish for privacy by including the ability to stop personalized ads with Android. Do you prefer personalized ads, or will be your privacy more important? Let us know inside the comments below.